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Artificial intelligence is changing more than how small businesses complete everyday tasks. For many owners, it is also influencing which services they pay outside providers to perform.
According to a Small Business Expo Research Team survey of 266 respondents, 66.9% say AI has changed which outside services their business pays for, including 31.2% who report significant changes.
The findings also suggest that marketing and creative services are particularly prominent among the work businesses may consider bringing in-house.
Highlights
- 66.9% say AI has changed which outside services their business pays for significantly or somewhat.
- 30.8% identify marketing/content as the service they are most likely to bring in-house because of AI.
- 50.6% of respondents reporting significant outsourcing changes select marketing/content, compared with 27.4% of those reporting some change.
How AI Is Changing Small Business Outsourcing
When asked whether AI has changed which outside services their business pays for, 31.2% of respondents answered “significantly,” while another 35.7% said “somewhat.”
Together, these groups represent approximately two-thirds of respondents.
The findings reflect a broader shift in how businesses incorporate AI into their operations. Intuit QuickBooks’ 2026 AI Impact Report found that more than three-quarters of surveyed U.S. small and midsize businesses regularly use AI, with applications ranging from administrative work to marketing and customer service.¹
Marketing and Creative Services Lead Potential In-House Work
The survey also asked which service respondents would be most likely to bring in-house because of AI.
Marketing and content ranked first at 30.8%, followed by design and creative services at 22.9%.
Administrative work accounted for 18.4% of responses, while 13.9% selected data and research. Another 13.9% indicated that they would not bring any of the listed services in-house.
Combined, 53.8% selected either marketing/content or design/creative, suggesting that creative and communication-related services are particularly prominent in respondents’ plans.
External research reflects similar pressures on service providers. A 2026 CXL and Wynter survey found that 27% of marketing leaders were replacing portions of agency work with AI, while 40% expected agencies to deliver work faster because of AI.²
Marketing Stands Out Where AI Has the Greatest Impact
Comparing responses to both survey questions reveals a notable relationship between outsourcing changes and the services businesses may bring in-house.
Among respondents who say AI has significantly changed their outsourcing decisions, 50.6% identify marketing/content as the service they would most likely handle internally.
That percentage falls to 27.4% among those reporting somewhat of a change, creating a 23.2-percentage-point difference.
Marketing and content also account for more than half of the responses in the significant-change group, compared with approximately one-third of respondents overall.
This suggests that marketing is particularly prominent in AI-driven small business outsourcing decisions, especially among businesses experiencing substantial changes.
Forrester’s 2026 research offers additional context, finding that B2B marketers are becoming more selective about agency spending as AI enables teams to handle more work internally.³
Although these findings do not establish that AI is replacing marketing providers, they point to changing expectations about which services businesses can manage themselves.
Not Every Business Is Changing Its Approach
Despite the majority reporting changes, 33.1% say AI has affected their outsourcing decisions very little, not at all, or that they are not using AI.
Additionally, 13.9% do not anticipate bringing any of the listed services in-house because of AI.
These responses highlight that the shift is not universal. Some businesses may continue relying on outside expertise even as AI capabilities expand.
Final Takeaway
The survey suggests that AI is increasingly influencing small business outsourcing decisions, particularly in marketing and creative work.
However, the findings point toward changing purchasing decisions rather than the disappearance of external providers.
As AI becomes more integrated into business operations, owners may increasingly reconsider which activities require outside expertise and which can be handled internally.
Footnotes
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Intuit QuickBooks. (2026). 2026 AI Impact Report. https://quickbooks.intuit.com/r/small-business-data/ai-impact-report/
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CXL & Wynter. (2026). AI’s Impact on Agencies: 2026 Survey Data. https://cxl.com/ai-impact-on-agencies-2026/
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Forrester. (July 15, 2026). As AI Use Expands, B2B Marketers Become More Selective About Agency Spend. https://www.forrester.com/blogs/as-ai-use-expands-b2b-marketers-become-more-selective-about-agency-spend/
Related: Small Business Owners Are Open to AI—With Human Oversight